Rotoform Rock Vessel and Plastiform Rocks
Rotoform Rock Vessel and Plastiform Rocks from Adriana Garcia
Rotoform Rock Vessel and Plastiform Rocks

The Rotoform Rock Vessel was a multistage project that combined both natural organic elements such as a family of rocks and sand into a styrene vessel meant to reflect and highlight the qualities of the rocks themselves.

The rocks I chose for my vessel share an ecclectic mix of rounded and flat sides in their form, they match each other in color and surface texture, and they demonstrate a nice size hierarchy.

Based on this, I decided to have my rock vessel be small and moderate with a wide opening. Its subtle details hint at the features of the rocks, such as the curvy opening and the irregular diamond-like shape of the vessel that mirror the round and flat faces of the rocks. Also the ripple-like edge is reflective of the linear texture on the rocks, while the tapered form brings out the size and height hierarchy of the rock family.

Like most of my work, the Rotoform Rock Vessel began as sketches that were then translated to foam models. Every foam model helped me think through the process of creating the vessel, and helped tweak and refine the final form.
Illustration showing the process of making the Rotoform Rock Vessel; all the way from sketches and foam models to a final vacuum thermoformed vessel.
Final concept drawing.
As a complimentary step to the Rotoform project, I created synthetic rocks out of REN shape that represent an idealized version of the original rock family I chose for the Rotoform project. As shown here, I went through several chavant clay iterations before deciding on final forms that best complimented the vessel's form.
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Rotoform Rock Vessel and Plastiform Rocks

The Rotoform Rock Vessel was a multistage project that combined both natural organic elements such as a family of rocks and sand into a styrene vessel meant to reflect and highlight the qualities of the rocks themselves.

The rocks I chose for my vessel share an ecclectic mix of rounded and flat sides in their form, they match each other in color and surface texture, and they demonstrate a nice size hierarchy.

Based on this, I decided to have my rock vessel be small and moderate with a wide opening. Its subtle details hint at the features of the rocks, such as the curvy opening and the irregular diamond-like shape of the vessel that mirror the round and flat faces of the rocks. Also the ripple-like edge is reflective of the linear texture on the rocks, while the tapered form brings out the size and height hierarchy of the rock family.

Adriana Garcia
Product Designer and Industrial Design Junior at Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA